Liverpool FC: Dalglish on collision course with FA over referees

Kenny Dalglish is on collision course with the FA over referees' treatment of Liverpool.

The Reds saw two appeals for spot kicks denied by referee Mark Clattenberg after both Rory Delap and Matthew Upson appeared to handle in their own penalty area.

Dalglish was clearly aggrieved after Liverpool were denied a penalty in the dying minutes of their first defeat of the season against Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium.

But the Kop boss insists that he will speak with club owners John Henry and Tom Werner before he takes his complaint to English football's governing body over a perceived bias against the club.

He said: "We can only do what we can do ourselves.

"Something other things are taken outside your jurisdiction, and if we conitnue to play like that with the same attitude and commitment then we'll be okay this season.

"But if we continually get battered by things that are outside of our control, then we're not going to have much chance.

"The first four league games have all had a contentious decision, and every one of them has gone against us.

"I think we have been respectful to the referees. But more importantly than being respectful to the referees in their campaign is having respect for Liverpool Football Club.

"And if I feel they are suffering in any way, shape or form, then I think I'll just need to go the same route as some other people go and see if we can gain some benefit from that.

"I'll speak to the owners first and see what they say, because the last thing I want to do is my behaviour to impinge on the club's success in any way, shape or form."

Despite his gripe with Clattenburg over the dubious decisions, Dalglish insists that he bears no ill feeling towards Tony Pulis' side for their hard-fought victory.

"We don't have any complaint, for want of a better word, about Stoke City," he added.

"They played well, got the goal, defended courageously at times and maybe occasionally they got a bit of luck but we don't have anything but appreciation for the way that they played, they way they held onto the game and the way they went on and won the game.

"So there's nothing for me to say anything other than complimentary towards Tony and Stoke."